If you’re one of the many Windows users still hanging on to Windows 7 with a tight grasp, Microsoft wants you to know that it’s not super happy about it. The company, which has already admitted that it used some shady tactics to get users to upgrade from 7, 8, and 8.1 to 10, is now trying a new approach by suggesting that continuing to use Windows 7 will inevitably lead to security issues for you as a user.
In a new blog post by Microsoft Germany, the company warns users that keeping an iron grip on Windows 7 is a really bad idea. Windows boss Markus Nitschke suggests that the aging operating system “does not meet the requirements of modern technology, nor the high security requirements of IT departments,” adding “With Windows 10, we offer our customers the highest level of security and functionality.”
The company also warns that because of the age of the operating system, security updates won’t plug all the holes. “Windows 7 is based on long-outdated security architectures. Three years before the end of the support, corporate customers in particular should deal with the transition to a modern operating system in good time,” the post reads. “Companies and users who [still use] Windows 7 with their sensitive data within three years are faced with enormous dangers.”
Windows 7 launched in 2009, and with the utter failure of Windows Vista still haunting Microsoft, the new operating system helped the company regain the good will of many longtime Windows fans. In a way, Vista is still an issue for Microsoft, as users who are now comfortable and happy with Windows 7 will be even more difficult to convince, having the memory of the XP-to-Vista debacle still relatively fresh in their memories. That being said, Windows 10 is largely considered to be a good upgrade for most users, save for the goofy smartphone-esque bloatware it brings with it, so if you’re still a Windows 7 user, you’ll probably be pretty comfortable with the upgrade once you dive in.
